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Fri, 09 Dec 2016 15:20:48 +0000Joomla! 1.5 - Open Source Content Managementen-gbUS stocks flat as ECB trims stimulus programhttp://www.brecorder.com/markets/equity/americas/331061-us-stocks-flat-as-ecb-trims-stimulus-program.html
http://www.brecorder.com/markets/equity/americas/331061-us-stocks-flat-as-ecb-trims-stimulus-program.htmlNEW YORK: Wall Street stocks were flat early Thursday as the European Central Bank extended its stimulus program but said it would decrease the pace of bond-buying.

The pace of ECB bond purchases will fall to 60 billion euros ($65 billion) per month in March from 80 billion euros per month. The program had originally been set to expire in March 2017, but was extended to December of next year.

"This new directive is being billed by many as a first step by the ECB toward tapering its asset purchases, yet the tonality of ECB President Draghi remains dovish," said Briefing.com analyst Patrick O'Hare.

Thirty minutes into trade, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up a hair at 19,552.92.

The broad-based S&P 500 dipped 0.1 percent to 2,239.96, while the tech-rich Nasdaq Composite Index advanced less than 0.1 percent at 5,395.12.

Both the Dow and S&P 500 finished at records Wednesday.

Costco Wholesale advanced 2.8 percent as earnings for the quarter ending November 20 rose 13.5 percent to $545 million. Analysts said the results suggested the big-box retailer was succeeding in a transition in credit cards to Citigroup from American Express.

Lululemon Athletica surged 17.9 percent as it announced a new $100 million stock repurchasing program after reporting better-than-expected third-quarter earnings.

Dow member Chevron climbed 0.1 percent following an announcement of a $19.8 billion capital budget for 2017. The oil giant said the budget was down at least 15 percent from the expected 2016 level, the latest instance of belt-tightening due to low oil prices.

NEW YORK: Wall Street's rise was held
back by health stocks on Wednesday while European stocks rose on reports Italy
would step in to rescue troubled bank Monte dei Paschi and on expectations the
European Central Bank would extend its bond-buying.

Major currencies treaded water with
traders waiting on the ECB's Thursday meeting to find out if the ECB's monthly
bond purchases will be kept steady or scaled back, and whether it will signal
the eventual end of the program.

Healthcare stocks were the biggest drag
on the S&P 500 after a report that President Elect Donald Trump said he
would bring down pricing. This led the benchmark S&P to take a breather
after three days of advances.

"When we have run up so high, it's
common that there is some sensitivity in the market, maybe due to softer oil
prices or just the technical aspects of being at such high levels," said
Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at First Standard Financial in New
York.

The Dow Jones industrial average was up
15.43 points, or 0.08 percent, to 19,267.21, the S&P 500 gained 2.28
points, or 0.1 percent, to 2,214.51 and the Nasdaq Composite had dropped 1.39
points, or 0.03 percent, to 5,331.61.

Oil prices fell as investors questioned
whether a deal to cut output agreed last week by the Organization of the
Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and others would be enough to drain a
global glut.

Brent crude, the international
benchmark, fell 75 cents to $53.19 a barrel. US light crude was down 94 cents
at $49.99 a barrel.

ITALIAN BANKS BOOST

The pan-European STOXX 600 index rose
0.7 percent while Italy's FTSE MIB share index gained 1.7 percent, to hit its
highest point since May as the country's banking stocks continued their
rally.

Reuters had reported exclusively on
Tuesday that Italy was preparing to take a 2-billion-euro controlling stake in
the bank as prospects of a private funding rescue faded following Prime
Minister Matteo Renzi's decision to resign after voters rejected his proposals
for constitutional reform.

"Despite the fact that the
probability of early elections has risen, the market is focusing on the banking
sector and the fact the government seems to be showing more urgency in dealing
with that problem," Mizuho strategist Antoine Bouvet said. The euro edged up 0.3 percent to $1.075.

The dollar index, which measures the US
currency against a basket of six of its major peers, was down 0.2 percent.

Benchmark 10-year Treasury notes
US10YT=RR were up 12/32 in price to yield 2.351 percent, down 4.5 basis points
from late on Tuesday.

The 10-year yield retreated further from
a near 1-1/2 year peak struck on Dec. 1 at 2.492 percent, according to Reuters
data.

SAO PAULO: The Brazilian real slipped on Tuesday as a Supreme Court decision
to oust the Senate's president raised concerns over potential delays in the
approval of austerity measures to curb the country's massive fiscal deficit.

Justice Marco Aurelio de Mello removed
Senator Renan Calheiros based on a majority ruling by the nation's top court last
month that any person indicted for a crime could not be in the presidential
line of succession. The court had indicted him last week on charges of
embezzlement.

Newspaper O Globo reported that his successor,
Senator Jorge Viana, had said privately he would suspend votes on legislation including
a constitutional cap on public spending. Anticipation that the flagship reform
would be swiftly approved had inspired investor confidence in President Michel
Temer's government.

Yields paid on short-term rate future contracts
in Brazil fell as traders increased bets that the central bank will
accelerate the pace of rate cuts in its January meeting following the release
of its lastest policy minutes.

The Mexican peso strengthened 0.8
percent to a two-week high after the country auctioned eight out of 10 deep water
oil and gas blocks in the Gulf of Mexico, raising expectations of capital inflows.

"The increase in foreign direct
investment is welcome in a context of the current account deficit and a
significant reliance of bilateral trade with the US and
remittances from abroad," strategists with BNP Paribas wrote in a client
note.

TORONTO: Canada's main stock index made
small gains in morning trading on Tuesday as Bank of Montreal led financial
shares higher on a strong earnings report, while the energy sector weighed.

Bank of Montreal rose 2.7 percent to C$91.99.
The country's fourth-largest lender reported quarterly earnings well ahead of
market expectations, benefiting from strong performances at its capital markets
and US personal and commercial businesses.

The financials group gained 0.6 percent. But eight of the other main groups fell, with
the energy sector retreating 0.4 percent as oil prices declined. Data showed
crude output rose in most major export regions despite plans by the
Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and Russia to cut production.

The materials group, which includes precious
and base metal miners and fertilizer companies, was the only other sector to
move higher, adding 0.6 percent.

One of the most influential gainers on the
index was Kirkland Lake Gold, which surged 123 percent to C$8.04 as its listing
was updated to incorporate its acquisition of Newmarket Gold. Industrials and telecoms each fell 0.4
percent, while technology stocks lost 1.1 percent. At 10:15 a.m. EST (1515 GMT), the Toronto
Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index was up 13.2 points, or 0.09
percent, at 15,108.37. US crude prices were down 2.7 percent at
$50.39 a barrel, while Brent crude lost 2.4 percent to $53.63.

Canada's trade deficit in
October shrank to C$1.13 billion ($850 million) from a record C$4.38 billion in
September as one-off factors helped slash the value of imports, Statistics
Canada data indicated on Tuesday.

NEW YORK: Gains by petroleum-linked equities helped push US stocks
higher early Monday as investors shrugged off an Italian referendum that adds
uncertainty to eurozone politics.

Drilling company Transocean jumped 3.9
percent and oil producers Apache and ConocoPhillips rose more than 2 percent as
oil prices continued to climb after last week's OPEC agreement to cut output.

Banking shares also continued an upward
push as expectations firm that the US Federal Reserve will raise interest rates
later this month. Goldman Sachs gained 2.3 percent, Bank of America 2.7 percent
and JPMorgan Chase 1.8 percent.

About 25 minutes into trading, the Dow
Jones Industrial Average was up 0.5 percent to 19,261.29, above Thursday's
record close.

Briefing.com analyst Patrick O'Hare said
markets were taking a wait-and-see approach to the Italian vote -- which
rejected the proposed reforms and led to the resignation of Prime Minister
Matteo Renzi -- due to the market's resiliency in the face of earlier surprise
votes in Britain and the United
States.

"Participants recognize that it has
paid handsomely to trade against the grain of conventional wisdom highlighting
the market risks associated with presumably adverse political outcomes,"
O'Hare said.

NEW
YORK: Wall Street stocks were
little changed early Friday after US
unemployment posted a nine-year low, boosting the chances of a Federal Reserve
interest rate hike this month.

The jobless rate fell three-tenths to 4.6
percent in November, with a solid 178,000 net new positions created, the
Department of Labor reported.

Briefing.com analyst Patrick O'Hare
pointed to some weaknesses in the report, such as a slight drop in average
hourly wages. But he joined other analysts in predicting the figures were
strong enough to keep the Fed on track to hike rates.

About 30 minutes into trade, the Dow
Jones Industrial Average was at 19,177.45, down 0.1 percent, retreating
slightly from Thursday's record.

Markets in London, Paris and Frankfurt fell as polls suggest
Italy will vote against a referendum supported by Prime Minister Matteo
Renzi, who could resign with a defeat.

Polls also suggest far-right Austrian
presidential candidate Norbert Hofer has a good shot of winning Sunday's
presidential race, an outcome that could further embolden anti-eurozone
interests.

Starbucks fell 2.6 percent after it
announced that Howard Schultz was stepping down as chief executive early next
year, to be replaced by president and chief operating officer Kevin Johnson.
Schulz will stay on as executive chairman and chairman of the board and will
build up the company's superpremium coffee shop business.

Gap fell 1.4 percent after reporting
that November comparable sales fell 1 percent. The apparel chain said trends
remained challenging, but that sales improved in the latter part of the month
as the holiday shopping season kicked off.

TORONTO: Canada's main stock index rose
on Thursday as energy shares made further gains with oil prices after OPEC
reached a deal to cut output, while investors reacted to divergent earnings
reports from two major banks.

Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce rose
1.9 percent to C$107.95 after the country's fifth-biggest bank reported a
better-than-expected quarterly profit, driven by strong performance in its
capital markets business.

Meanwhile, the country's No. 2 lender
Toronto-Dominion Bank fell 1 percent to C$62.95 after reporting earnings that
were in line with expectations. "In
light of earnings produced by some of TD's peers, we would expect relative
underperformance on its valuation today, with TD's now noticeably lagging
capital ratio likely adding to the pressure," Barclays analyst John Aiken
wrote in a note. The heavyweight
financials group gained 0.2 percent overall.

The energy group climbed 3 percent,
adding to a nearly 8 percent jump on Wednesday after OPEC members and Russia
agreed to limit their oil output in a bid to prop up prices.

It hit a near 18-month intraday high on
Wednesday. Half of the index's 10 main
groups were in positive territory, with advancers outnumbering decliners by a
1.2-to-1 ratio.

The materials group, which includes
precious and base metals miners and fertilizer companies, lost 1 percent as
gold prices hit a 10-month low.

US crude prices were up 2.9 percent to
$50.87 a barrel, while Brent added 3.1 percent to $53.44.

Gold futures fell 0.7 percent to
$1,162.3 an ounce and copper prices lost 0.5 percent to $5,796.5 a tonne.

The pace of growth in Canadian
manufacturing picked up modestly in November as a measure of new orders rose to
its highest in seven months, data showed, an encouraging sign for a sector that
has struggled to make strong gains this year.

SAO PAULO: Brazil's currency and stocks fell on Thursday as traders feared frictions
between lawmakers and prosecutors could increase political instability and
delay the approval of austerity measures.

Senate President Renan Calheiros tried
to accelerate on Wednesday the approval of a greatly watered-down package of anticorruption
measures but failed to gather enough support for the early vote.

Prosecutors have accused the Brazilian
Congress of seeking to block the sweeping Car Wash graft probe as it comes
close to incriminating several lawmakers.

Federal police launched a raid targeting
Ita? as part of a probe into alleged bribery of tax officials regarding a case involving
a local unit of FleetBoston Corp that Ita? bought from Bank of America a decade
ago.

A half-hour into the day's session, the first full trading day following the Thanksgiving holiday, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500 and Nasdaq were all 0.2 percent lower at 19,106.43, 2,209.08 and 5,389.60, respectively.

US stock indices have smashed records, rallying since Donald Trump's November 8 upset victory over Hillary Clinton in the presidential elections, with investors cheered by hopes Trump will boost infrastructure spending, cut taxes and ease regulations.

Oil prices rebounded at the start of the week after turning sharply lower Friday as investor hopes of a production deal by crude-producing countries faded. Saudi officials said early Monday they would not join a meeting with Russian officials.

Exxon Mobil fell 0.5 percent and Marathon Petroleum lost 0.2 percent but other US oil-related stocks were in positive territory, with ConocoPhillips up 1.1 percent and Chevron gaining 0.1 percent.

Oil field services giant Schlumberger lost 0.4 after announcing Sunday it had reached a preliminary agreement to study an oil field in Iran.

Online retailers were bracing for the "Cyber Monday" rush of orders during a day of heavy sales and promotions. Amazon fell 1.6 percent in morning trading while eBay was down one percent and crafts marketplace Etsy was 0.8 percent lower.

The Commerce and Labor departments this week are due to report on economic growth and monthly job creation, with investors looking to see if markets will extend a record-breaking post-election rally further into the holiday period.

About five minutes into trading on the first full day back from the Thanksgiving holiday weekend, the Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500 and Nasdaq were all trading 0.2 percent lower at 19,114.75, 2,209.69 and 5,386.83 respectively.

Oil prices rebounded at the start of the week after turning sharply lower on Friday as investor hopes of a production deal by crude producing countries faded. Saudi officials said early Monday they would not join a meeting with Russian officials.

Exxon Mobil opened 0.3 percent lower but other US oil-related stocks were in positive territory, with ConocoPhillips up one percent and Marathon Petroleum gaining 0.7 percent.

Online retailers were bracing for the "Cyber Monday" rush of orders during a day of heavy sales and promotions. Amazon lost 1.3 percent near the start of trading while eBay was down 0.8 percent and crafts marketplace Etsy was 0.5 percent lower.

The Commerce and Labor departments this week are due to report on economic growth and monthly job creation, with investors looking to see if markets will extend a record-breaking post-election rally further into the holiday period.

The most influential movers on the index included railroad stocks, with Canadian National Railway Co falling 0.9 percent to C$89.37, and Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd declining 1.3 percent to C$199.33.

The energy group fell 0.5 percent amid volatility in crude oil ahead of a meeting this week of major oil producers.

US crude prices were up 2.1 percent at $47.03 a barrel, recouping earlier losses as the market reacted to the shaky prospect of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries being able to agree output cuts at a meeting on Wednesday.

Financials fell 0.3 percent as bond yields declined and investors awaited fourth-quarter results this week from some of Canada's major banks.

Sun Life Financial Inc fell 1.1 percent to C$52.48, while Bank of Nova Scotia was down 0.2 percent at C$72.75.

Zinc soared to a nine-year high and lead hit a five-year peak as reports of more infrastructure investment in China and signs of strong property investment in the world's top metals user sparked heavy buying.